Many runners made use of our fast course to notch impressive results again this year, but it was the women who seemed most ready to take it to another level. With light to moderate rain all day Saturday as the only problem counterbalanced by reasonable temperatures and low winds, runners would be free to maximize performances. We had the smallest field ever for the 48-Hour, and three of the six exited well before the end. When leader Peter Birckhead stopped with severe foot pain, Mark Fraser found himself the sudden recipient of a seven lap lead over Heather Kick. After taking a couple of longish sleep breaks, Mark's lead shrank to three laps as he passed 112 miles. Mark reversed that trend by reeling off a series of very brisk mid- to low-twenty minute laps, and then coasted to victory. We cannot leave the 48-Hour without mentioning that third place finisher Corrie Muench was competing in her first race beyond the half-marathon.The gem performance of the weekend began on Saturday morning with the 24-Hour start. Jody-Lynn Reicher and Pasi Kirkilahti provided the early fireworks as they clocked sub-15 minute laps for the first 12 miles. It seems winter in New Jersey or Finland may have been good preparation for the drizzly conditions. After a 3:43 marathon, Jody-Lynn led by four minutes. As Pasi faded with knee pain, consistent pacing moved Brad Smythe, Glenn Turner and Sandy Powell up in the rankings. Former champion Jackie Nolen was also giving chase.After 40 miles in 6:21, Jody-Lynn took a long break and gave up the lead to a surprising Sandy Powell. By 50 miles in 8:16, Sandy was nine minutes ahead of Glenn and another six minutes up on Brad. Metronomic pacing doubled her lead by the time she reached 100 kilometers in 10:26. Shortly thereafter, the race for first was over. She hardly slowed, reaching 100 miles in 17:56. From 100-K on, Glenn and Brad were locked into a tight struggle for second place. For the remainder of the race, Sandy's lap times strayed above 26 minutes on only four occasions as she completely redefined steadiness in ultrarunning. Her final total of 129.3 miles was an all-comers course record. The men's division came down to a one lap difference with Brad eking out a one lap victory at 106 miles. Sandys pacing must have been inspiring, as six of nine starters surpassed 100 miles in the 24-Hour.For the third year in a row, Colorado sent speed to our 100-Kilometer, this time in the form of Karen Scott. Although the race was marred by the absence of France's Henri Girault for the first time in it's history, Karen turned in a stellar performance with little direct competition. Instead, she competed in her mind with a pacing chart on which times of other contenders for the 100-K national team were divided into even two mile splits. This approach brought her an impressive 8:22:14 and a five hour victory over men's champion Phil Wright.With three-time champion Ryan Loehding missing at the start of the 12-Hour, the race might have been up for grabs. However, Nicholas Meza made it look easy while winning by over 16 miles. Jane Ftacnik took the women's 12-Hour.After tying with Ryan in last year's 12-Hour, Carlos Ibarra returned this year to try the 6-Hour. His race was surprising on several counts. His early pace was impressive, averaging just over 14 minutes per lap, giving the impression he might be trying for a sub-6 hour 50 mile. Then, after a 3:10 marathon, he slowed down markedly, leading to speculation whether he would even reach 40 miles. Finally, with another burst of speed, he completed his 21st lap with barely three seconds on the clock to win in a new course record. Nancy Crane paced herself nicely through the event to become women's champion.For best overall performance of the 2005 Houston Ultra Event Weekend, Sandys 129.31 mile 24-Hour and Karens fast 100 kilometer were the top contenders. By our calculation, Sandy takes the prize.Entries were down this year, perhaps due to rumors of race director problems. After two great stints as race director, Wes Monteith took a job that placed him out of Houston for the race and a couple of months prior. Great credit must be given to Joe Sellers, who took over as RD on short notice and ran a flawless operation with the help of the usual cadre of quality volunteers.

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About Lisa

World-class endurance athlete and ultrarunner, Lisa Smith-Batchen has competed in countless races around the world. She is the only American to have won the Marathon des Sables in the Sahara. She has completed Badwater nine times, including a double crossing, and has won the race twice. Last summer, Lisa Smith-Batchen became the first person to run 50 miles in each of the 50 states to raise money for orphans. Co-owner and founder of the Dreamchasers Foundation, she and her husband Jay Batchen offer personalized training and camps to help other athletes achieve their goals. 100% of the proceeds go to the Dreamchasers Foundation and to Aids Orphans Rising. To make a donation click here: DONATIONS